The Redemption Place
by polybi
Summary: This is a story of redemption. This is set at the end of the season finale. Caution, as per usual in my stories, there are multiple-person relationships and some bisexuality. Your comments are appreciated. So would a way to select characters, dear FF mgt!
1. Chapter 1

_Some spoilers to "What We Owe To Each Other," with injections of the great erimthar's "Reboot." However it does happen later in the series, not-exactly canon._

 _This is my first "The Good Place" fic. Be kind._

 _The Good Place is created by Michael Schur, and is owned by Fremulon, 3 Arts Entertainment, and Universal Television/NBC. This is for fun, not profit._

* * *

 **The night before**.

It was inevitable.

Sinkholes had started to appear in the Good Place again. And the giant bugs. And everything else that appeared that first fateful night. Michael, who was the architect of this little afterlife village again offered to banish himself.

Eleanor Shellstrop had gone through this before. She was sent to the Good Place by mistake...she was not a good person. Not evil, just not that good. She was more deserving of the Bad Place, but she wanted to stay. In that vein she attempted to be something she could never be on earth...a good person.

Everyone in the Good Place is assigned a SoulMate, and Chidi Anagonye was Eleanor's. He was an ethics professor, and helped Eleanor and another resident Jason Mendoza, a DJ and part time drug dealer who, like Eleanor, was sent to The Good Place by mistake.

Tahani Al-Jamil was not sent by mistake. She was a truly good person. She was born of wealth, but no one understood her. She wanted to be her own person and not in her family's shadow. Even her house in the Good Place was too ostentatious. She'd rather have something like what was next door to her's...and sweet little euro-cottage...the one that housed Eleanor and Chidi. Jason was Tahani's SoulMate, but she stayed with him after she found out his secret. They remained good friends and occasional bed partners...Jason had a crush, but then so did everyone else in the Good Place.

In fact, Eleanor's polyamorous nature and budding kindness lead to close relationships with Chidi, Jason, and Tahani. There was one rather disastrous attempt between Eleanor and Michael, but since he reminded her of the father she never had, and she reminded him of the daughter he never had, it seemed like a pretty good idea to just remain friends.

And then, there was Janet.

Janet was a computer program, really. No acronym for anything, just Janet. She was the Alexa/Siri of the place. She knew everything, she was totally confidential with everyone, including Eleanor. Call her name and she popped up and would give you anything you needed, from information to a hoodie.

And on one day, when Eleanor called Janet out to find a partner for nocturnal gymnastics (sex was allowed in the Good Place), and when no partners were found, Janet offered, shall one say, her services.

It was magic.

It was the best Eleanor ever had on any plane of existence. And after Janet eventually found her way back on line (apparently Eleanor was that good, as well), the A.I. cheerfully announced that her circuits were refreshed, her thought processes were clear...and she was in love with Eleanor Shellstrop.

To which Eleanor's mouth hung open just long enough for a naked Janet (who hid her massive charms very well in that 80's blue dress of her's) kissed her human lover one more time before clothes magically reconnected with Janet's body.

And it was like that for what earth people would call a year. Eleanor was getting closer to her friend, including sexually except for Michael. And through Eleanor, they all found a way to get out of their shells. It was, for Eleanor, heaven.

But the one day it went to hell quick. The bad dream that had come to life the night that Eleanor arrived had spring up again, only this time it was worse. And once again, Michael took it up on himself to take the blame. It was time for Michael to place himself into exile again.

This time Eleanor could not let that happen. Michael and the people she had grown to love had done so much. She was not perfect, but because of them, she was a better spirit than she was coming in. She could not allow Michael to do this to himself.

So she confessed. She confessed to Michael, with Janet in attendance, that she was the cause of all that had happened. That there was a mistake, that the wrong Eleanor was sent to the Good Place, and that she did not deserve being there.

After some verification, it was found that she was right, that she was not someone who qualified for the Good Place. And that she would be required to go to the Other Place.

But Michael's bosses were a rather kind lot, all things considered, and they allowed Eleanor a week to say her goodbyes. Then, on that final day, at a place of her choosing, Eleanor would be sent to a peaceful sleep where she would wake up in her new, eternal hell.

And she could choose anyone of the 300+ people that lived in that village to be with her on that final night. There was no question who those people would be.

So gathered at the Good Place train depot were the people she held dearest to her heart. The only way out of the village was by train and the only person who could run that train was Janet. All that had to happen was for Eleanor to board the train, and be transported to the other place. But she did have a chance to say goodbye.

First, she said goodbye to Michael. The tightness of that hug showed that he was the closest thing to a father Eleanor ever had in this or the other life, and that she may never have again. Jason was next. The pretense the DJ had of being a Buddhist monk taking a vow of chastity and silence. Jason showed that Eleanor was not alone a flawed one. In fact, Eleanor was right when she said that everyone in the Good Place had a flaw. Jason was a good friend, and the kiss Eleanor gave him was proof of that.

Tears were already streaming down Tahani's face when Eleanor turned to her. The Indo-Brit mentioned that there was no time for her to create a going away party for the blonde. "Don't worry, I know it would have been awesome." Then, Tahahi playfully touched Eleanor's button nose, the way she had done many times before, in the beginning annoyingly, then progressing to something more intimate. "Boop." Tahani tried to keep her emotions in check as she went through her part of the routine one last time. Eleanor smirked, but her own face was stained with tears: "It's goodbye...I deserve more than just a boop..." And then she took her hands to bring Tahani's face to hers and gave her a deep deep kiss. Then their faces parted.

"I love you Eleanor."

"I love you Boopsie."

Then there was Chidi. This one hurt.

There were no words at all. Of all of the former humans there, Chidi was the one she loved the most. He was the one who dealt with all of Eleanor's shit, but he was the one most responsible for her transformation. And in turn, somehow, Eleanor taught Chidi that common sense can be both moral and complicated. They were there for each other every step of the way. And though she was going to the Bad Place, it felt like a graduation. Theirs was the deepest kiss of all, and when it was over, eyes wet with tears, the just smiled to each other. That said everything.

There was one more goodbye, but that had to wait after she boarded the train. Eleanor faced Janet. That ever-present smile of her's. Chipper to the end. It was one of the things that annoyed Eleanor to the core...and one of the things that endeared her to her heart.

Then they boarded.

* * *

There was no luggage. Eleanor's wardrobe would be waiting for her at the end of this ride. Just take a seat, and that would be that.

But before taking Eleanor took her seat, Janet wanted to tell her a few things. First, Eleanor would be given a vial. It contained a solution that, once consumed, would gently put her to sleep. When she woke up, she would be on the start of her new journey. Second, Janet would be with her the entire time...no one should be going to the Bad Place alone. Eleanor gave a small smile, then she asked a favor.

"Janet...would you...one last time..?"

Janet was always the intuitive program...so intuitive it almost seemed that she was human. The taller brunette gently held Eleanor's face, bend down slightly, and kissed her gently, deeply. A last kiss should be like this. Eleanor knew that if an artificial intelligence could love, Janet could. And she knew that, somehow, Janet did.

Lips and faces separated just in time to hear an "all aboard" call from someone who sounded a lot like Janet.

And to Eleanor's surprise...it was...or at _least anothe_ r Janet...but this one wore a train conductor's uniform...and was just as cheerful as the original Janet. "We're taking off!" said conductor Janet in that impossibly cheery voice that Eleanor found both exasperating and amazing. Both gave mutual thumbs-up, then conductor Janet disappeared behind a curtain, leaving Eleanor and the original Janet seated together next to a window in an otherwise empty train car.

After a few minutes the train left the station. The ride was rather pleasant and quiet, Eleanor looking out the window at a rapidly passing pastoral setting, or looking at Janet...the blonde wanted to remember the brunette...A.I. or not...because she was convinced that she would never see her again.

It was a half hour when Eleanor told Janet she was ready. Janet pulled out the vial, handed it to Eleanor, who looked at the vial, then looked at Janet, then kissed the brunette a final time. When Eleanor removed her face from Janet's, she noticed the brunette's face was wet from water that came from her eyes.

"I love you Eleanor." The blonde smiled and looked Janet in her eyes as she slowly drank the contents of the vial.

Janet moved the armrest between them up and motioned Eleanor to put her head on the AI's lap. Then Janet started to sing...

 _Is it a kind of a dream..._

 _Floating out on the tide..._

 _Following the river of death downstream..._

 _Oh is it a dream...?_

Janet knew everything, including the fact that Watership Down was one of Eleanor's favorite movies when she was little. She watched every showing on HBO, even just before she was killed. Eleanor kissed the dress that covered Janet's leg, as a thank-you. The drug was starting to work...

 _There's a fog along the horizon_

 _A strange glow in the sky_

 _And nobody seems to know where it goes_

 _And what does it mean?_

 _Oh is it a dream?_

Sleep was coming, gently but inevitably. The sound of Janet's voice singing her favorite song. She could hear the A.I's voice quiver. She could tell when something was an act, and it wasn't an act. Janet was crying. And Eleanor felt guilty about it. But as darkness descended and hearing faded, she knew one thing...whatever she would wake up to she would be at peace. Such was the power of Janet...

 _Bright eyes, burning like fire_

 _Bright eyes, how can you close and fail?_

The power of what those words meant suddenly hit Janet like a million power surges. She was losing Eleanor. She was lost in the land of nod, and she would never see the bright eyes of Eleanor Shellstrop again.

 _How can the light that burned so brightly,_

 _Suddenly burn so pale...?_

Janet tried, but she could not get the last line of "Bright Eyes" out. The crying was heavy now. The A.I. cursed the fates for this. Yes she came in as the amoral person by mistake, but she was getting better. Better because she was surrounded by Michael's fatherly love, the friendship and passion of Chidi and Tahani, and even Jason. And whatever Janet did to help.

And all of this happened because she did the one act of unselfishness, confessing that she was in the Good Place by mistake, giving up, essentially, her life to save Michael, Chidi, and the others. If Eleanor Shellstrop was still on earth, that one act would have been worth over a million positive points...

And then it hit her. Like an atomic bomb it hit Janet. Her eyes went wide. She was still crying, but the smile forming was not that of a helper but that of someone experiencing total ecstasy. She screamed for Conductor Janet, suddenly appeared in the aisle next to the pair. "Turn this train around?"

"Janet, I do not understand..."

"We are turning around...we're going back...and Eleanor's coming back with us!" The demeanor of Original Janet was that of a kid who just found the dollar in the morning when the fallen out tooth was.

"Right-o!" Conductor Janet, like all the other Janets, was cheerful to a fault. Conductor saluted Original, then Conductor Janet disappeared back to the engine room. That left Original Janet and the sleeping Eleanor alone.

"Everything will be fine...my love." Janet continued to stroke Eleanor Shellstrap's hair and whispered that she loved the blonde... And as she felt the train stop, then start to move in reverse, Janet knew that...if she was right...everything would be alright, indeed.

 **TBC**

 _The song Bright Eyes was written by Art Garfunkel for the 1977 movie Watership Down. This is a bit of AU, and I have never done a TGP fanfic before. Let me know what you think._


	2. The Real Vicky

_**Previously, in the past**_

 _Amazingly, Eleanor Shellstrop figures out Michael's gambit, that the Good Place is really the Bad Place, Michael says that he is going to reset everything, including Eleanor and her friends Chidi, Tahani, Jason, and the A.I. Janet. But before he could snap his fingers to start the reset, Vicky (who played the "real" Eleanor as part of Michael's gambit, bursts in, freezes both Michael and his superior Sean, then runs out of Casa Ikea in tears. Janet and Jason stay behind to keep an eye on Michael and Shaun, as the other run out in hot pursuit to find out why, after being part of Michael's scheme, did Vicky turn on her masters..._

 **In the present**

It took a Herculean effort on the parts of Eleanor, Chidi, Tahani, and Vicky to keep their horny hands off each other _(but what else was new...?)_. Actually, it was 9am, or what would pass as 9 in the morning in the afterlife, and Noon...not the mention the Big Event. Which means that any extracurriculars would have to wait until after the Big Post-Event at Casa Tahani later tonight.

Speaking of the Sexy Skyscraper, she was trying to calm down Chidi, who was going through the same thing he went through the last time he was in this position..

"Darling, what you need is someone who can make your decisions for you...like this one..." And with that Tahani tossed the white tux Chidi was fretting over and told him to wear the black tux with the tieless white shirt. Chidi gave the tall woman one of his trademark cockeyes smiles and a kiss on the lips as a thank you. "Look, Chidi, being a best man this time is going to be easy. Besides, your decisiveness was one of the reasons we're here, love..." That of course, got the social maven another sloppy kiss from the ethics professor.

While that was going on in the guest bedroom, in the master bedroom (aka, the "clown" boudoir), Eleanor had a similar problem. She knew Tahani was busy with Chidi, she was in the big bedroom with Vicky trying to choose a dress for the occasion. The easy thing would be to call out for Janet to help with the selection, but the A. I. was busy taking care of her husband, Jason. Plan B, of course, would be Bad Janet, but knowing her, Bad Janet would pick a dress with a neckline that would stop just a few meters south of Peru.

That was Bad Janet's choice for Vicky, though Eleanor had to admit the the white dress that the bad A.I. chose for the former "real Eleanor" accentuated many curves that Vicky sought to hide for reasons that Eleanor could not fathom since she and her partners in the other room appreciated said curves on a regular basis.

The problem is most of what Eleanor had was pretty casual: jeans, shorts, t-shirts, and sweats. She plopped her butt on the mattress and let out a heavy sigh. Vicki sat next to her and held the blonde's hand. "You do know you can do this," said Vicki as Eleanor's frustration grew exponentially. "How?" sighed the blonde. "God," replied the achingly cute Indian, "you have a short memory. Look...close your eyes, and think of what you want to look like today." Eleanor looked straight at the double doors of the closet and began to close her eyes when Vicki's fingers captured Eleanor's chin and turned to the tanned woman. "Let me give you a little incentive..." and with that Vicki gave the blonde a gentle, wet kiss on her lips.

With a chirpy "OK" Eleanor then closed her eyes and visualized the outfit she wanted to be seen in. She wanted it to be "Eleanor," something that would be a visual of herself, but also be special, because this was to be the most special day of her afterlife.

Within seconds, the blonde heard the smaller woman's voice tell her to turn around, and when Eleanor did, there was a beautiful yellow pants-gown made of silk. The neckline looked like it could show just enough, though not as much as Vicki's cleavage-fest. Eleanor looked upon the dress with astonishment. "I did this...?"

"I can't imagine you still don't realize that you can do more than that. It's stuff like this this that..." Vicky's eager demeanor grew quieter and more pensive. "It's stuff like that that saved me. That saved all of us." It was then that tears began to fall from her face, a face soon buried in the chest of Eleanor.

The blonde lifted the Indian woman's face and kissed her lips gently, then held Vicky for a long moment, speaking to her quietly. "You know, short stuff, we actually saved each other..." And even as tears kept falling, Vicky Sangupta started to smile at the words, remembering the reason why Eleanor said them...

 _ **In the past**_

 _Before all this, there was no being that could be a better friend, pal, confidante, or wing person than Todd. Vicki knew this. She knew that after drinking Todd under a table, he would take her home in one piece. He's listen to you for hours and hours non stop, then only give you the advice you needed after you were done. If it were possible to marry him, Todd would be the perfect spouse, save for one tiny detail._

 _Todd was a fire monster._

 _One of the gatekeepers of the bad place, Todd was one of those who kept the eternal fires going for those in who were deemed deserving of standard issue eternal torture. Problem was that Todd was too nice of a guy to do torture. This put Todd on Shawn's permanent shirt list. He was a misfit, but then so was Vicky. She truly was the mistake, not the woman she was pretending to be. No she wasn't a very young Mother Teresa, but she was telling the truth about helping innocent people, being an actual clerk and associate at the Arizona Justice Project**. Not to mention her nights were spent honing her acting skills at the Torch Improv. It was Todd's gentleness and Vicky's relentless cheerfulness that had them become fast friends, especially when she needed a friend most._

 _Michael's gambit was starting to unravel with Eleanor's "confession" that she was the cause of all of the things that were happening in the Good Place since she arrived. MIchael, Shaun, and head demon in charge Trevor agreed that they had to come up with a "real" Eleanor. It was a hurried choice, Trevor knew about Vicky's improv skills. Michael liked her, Sean was suspicious because Vicky did not have that "evil" streak about her, but it was decided, so it was the BP Crew, Trevor, and a very nervous Vicky on that train._

 _And when Vicky stepped off the train, it was like everything crashed around her. She was briefed about her "marks" beforehand of course, but when she first met them, her insides turned into strawberry Jello. There was Tahani, perfect face and figure and so tall. Chidi, glasses hiding piercing eyes and a knowing demeanor, and Eleanor. There were no words for Eleanor, this mix of sexuality and mischief in that light-skinned blonde frame. There was one other thing about Eleanor, more than the other two: a total lack of bullshirt. Todd had told Vicky that the one thing they feared in both the Good and Bad Places was a that lack of bullshirt that everyone covers themselves up in, for without that filter, a person could do amazing things._

 _But then, Todd knew that about Vicky, and he wanted to protect her._

 _And there were times when that lack of BS could have been Vicky's downfall. For instance, there was that time when Eleanor pretty much accused Vicky of coming on to her when she mentioned that Eleanor might have been in love with Vicki's actual designated soulmate Chidi (though if both could confess, they both were and are). The move should have been something like "you're crazy" or something like that, but she just kept going, probably because subconsciously, she was coming on to the blonde._

 _Then there was the fact that everyone...everyone...called Eleanor "Fake Eleanor," except the person who was playing "Real Eleanor." Vicki was never going to do that to the Real Eleanor Shelstrop._

 _Finally it was a short time before this. Vicki's intent was to grab Chidi, steal the train with the help of any Janet she could find, confess to the man and plot a way to save the others, including Jason and the Good Janet. That was rendered pointless when Michael announce the jig was up. Vicky yelled that everyone sucked and walked out. And when the door closed, the small woman burst into tears._

 _Bambadjan, the "legal eagle" who was part of the scheme, tried to comfort Vicki, and was succeeding when the woman put a very determined on her face. "You have to go, Bambadjan. You can't be here." Bambadjan tried to find out why the woman was shooing him away, but the woman just near-screamed "You have to go...NOW!" Bambadjan did leave, just in time for Vicky to hear what was happening. The woman had to act fast to stop what she knew Michael was going to do. Without a warning, Vicky bursts into the house, raises both hands, and emitted a pulse that froze Michael and Shaun in place, then ran out into the night, tears flying from her face..._

 _And that is how Vicky wound up weeping almost uncontrollably on a park bench in the center of town, with Todd the Fire Monster kneeling in front of her. He wanted to hold her, and he could have activated a cooling system that would have doused the fire so he could do that, but it was a chilly night, and the fire that burned through Todd's body of brimstone and ash put out warmth that was a good as a hug. Vicky loved him that._

" _You really do love them," the fire monster remarked._

" _I could never tell them, Todd." Vicky was still beside herself. "After everything, can can never know..."_

" _Know what, Vik?" It was Eleanor, along with Chidi and Tahani standing on either side of the blonde._

 _Now to be fair, Eleanor was a great admirer of a good scam, and mentally her hat was off to Michael and everyone involved, but something was off about Vicky and what she did at the Ikea house, and now, overhearing Vicki's candid confession to whom Eleanor called "The Thing, Jr.," something resembling compassion started setting in._

 _Vicky looked up at the quartet eyeing her intently. Chidi's piercing eyes, Tahani standing there with her arms folded, and Eleanor just standing there, nose flaring._

 _Vicki's face was drained of blood and the look of terror was etched on. She did not know exactly what was in the minds of the four, but her instinct was to run, which she got up and did._

 _The trio started to give chase when Todd told them to stop._

" _Give me one good reason, Rock Boy!' Eleanor was angry and scared and she didn't this, whatever it was._

 _One could not see desperation on a face made of hardened magma, but that desperation was there. "Look, the thing of it is...she loves you. All four of you..." The looks of disbelief were universal on the faces of the three, with Eleanor even more so as Todd continued: "she's been feeling bad about all of this. I think...I think she's going to...retire." Suddenly when that word was mentioned, it hit Eleanor...Michael's gruesome description of what "retirement" was._

" _Fork! The eternal sheik!" Eleanor's face had terror written all over it. Now, not only did she seeks answers, but she now had to stop Vicky from ending her life. She turned and saw the increasingly tiny figure of Vicky still running down the street, but now turning left. Eleanor told the others to stay put; she was going after Vicky alone, then she took off as fast as she could._

 _ **A/N**_ _:_

 _**There truly is an Arizona Justice Project that really does help people wrongly convicted of crimes. You can find then in the Google machine under "azjusticeproject."_

 _Coming up: Can Eleanor stop Vicky from going into The Eternal Shriek? Plus, the two Eleanors open up, a truth is revealed, and an architect is put on the path to redemption._

 _Likes and kudos are nice. Actual comments are better._


	3. Push the Button

_**Author's notes:**_

 _ **A short note that it is obvious I will not finish this in time for the season premiere. So this is essentially non-canon. Your comments are most welcome. The usual disclaimers...**_

* * *

 **In the past...**

It wasn't much light in the center of the village when Eleanor got there. Vicky had gotten away.

Eleanor could have cursed at herself for allowing the that girl to get away, that was if the Good Place Profanity Filter didn't turn every curse into a fork, a shirt, or a beet.

The blonde couldn't blame Vicky for being afraid. Yes, she impersonated Eleanor as part of Michael's evil plan, however she could not get it through her head that Michael was evil...more like a 500-year-old kid who never grew up. There other things Eleanor could not get out of her head. For one thing, if torture was what Michael was after, how come almost time torture came, they all got out of it together? All Michael or whoever was controlling had to do was find a way to keep them apart. But they kept finding ways to working things out together. Eleanor and Chidi and Tahani and Jason and the AI Janet. They kept finding a way to work things out.

And Vicki, herself. You'd think that if she was part of a scheme to torture her, why did she seem so selfless. Time and time again, Vicki as "Real" Eleanor seemed to be almost selfless in trying to get Actual Eleanor and Chidi together. Almost as if...as if she was sacrificing for some better good.

And there was that one thing. It kept nagging at her ever since that "negotiation" at Tahani's...everyone kept calling her "Fake" Eleanor...everyone except Vicky. She never did...or never could. Vicky apparently had a moral core that seemed to prevent her from saying that lie.

The con-woman with a heart of gold..

And now, more than ever, Eleanor had to find Vicky...there were so many questions to ask...and besides, as much as she knew that she was in love with Chidi and Tahani...she knew that she was falling fast with Vicki as well. Fast and hard.

But where was she? Outside of the usual street lights that were never very bright anyway, Eleanor could not see much. "I wish I could fly again!" Now, Eleanor is screaming to the sky.

"You can!"

Eleanor forgets that here, the sky can scream back. And...at least in this case...it sounds like Janet.

"Janet...? Where are you?"

"I"m in your head, Eleanor. It's the same neural transmit/receive system used to summon me, I can communicate with you through that."

Eleanor was about to reply, when Janet's voice came through with a sense of great urgency: "We don't have much time. You _can_ fly. Michael lied and said it was cancelled, but you can. You were told that you had to think of good thoughts, but your thoughts were not truly good. Try again, but only good thoughts. We have to run...someone's coming..."

Then Janet's voice stopped.

Good thoughts. Good thoughts. She thought of Mindy St. Claire, the earthy woman from the Medium place she hung out with along with Janet and Jason. She thought of Bambajan, the legal eagle...he was part of it but he really seemed to want to help. There was Bart and Nina. They probably were also part of the plan, but they were instrumental in keeping Eleanor and Chidi together.

Chidi, who saved her life.

Tahani, that sexy skyscraper of a woman.

Jason. Even under another name, guy was as innocent as a 6 year old.

All the versions of Janet.

Even Michael, who even evil would have made a better dad than Eleanor's own. And, come of think about, that Mindy St. Claire would have made a better mom.

And then there was Vicky...

Vicky...

Suddenly, Eleanor and the ground separated at very high velocity. The higher she climbed, the louder Eleanor' screams became louder...

"Stretch. Out. Your Arms..."

Eleanor heard the voice of Janet in her mind. The A.I.'s instructions were simple and to the point..."Stretch your arms forward, like Supergirl...think of where you are going or who you want to find..."

"Like Vicky," replied Eleanor to Janet...or at least to the rushing air surrounding the flying Shellstrop. But Eleanor followed the instructions. And although the Power of the Good Place seemed to be guiding her now in a predetermined direction, it was impossible for Eleanor not to feel the freedom of flight.

Suddenly, Eleanor was flying over what seemed to be a group of warehouse. Before she could ask herself about those buildings, she looked down to see a tumbling figure seemingly frantic, desperately trying to find something. As the person found a doorway to enter, Eleanor easily recognized her.

 _Vicky._

Whatever force was guiding Eleanor to that brought her down to a relatively soft 2-point landing. And with that, she ran into the large metal structure looking for her impersonator.

It was dark and deathly still inside. Obviously there was some climate control but Eleanor stumbled trying to find her way.

Suddenly, a crash. And another, and another. And the sound of a woman weeping. Vicky weeping.

Feeling her way, Eleanor followed the sounds until she reached a well-lit storage room that looked like the rear of a supermarket, which is where she found her target.

In open compartments, stacked on top of each other, were towers with buttons on top of them. They were identical to the fail-safe that was on the beach that Eleanor and Chidi used to try to "murder" Janet to keep Michael from going into that torturous "retirement." Vicky was searching for something frantically, and Eleanor was afraid of exactly what she was looking for. Because, if they were all fail-safe resets...

"Vicky...?" Eleanor tried to get the darker woman's attention when the latter stopped as if she recognized one of the towers. She grabbed it and pulled it out, with some difficulty for that tower seemed to be heavy. The button and a tear-stained Vicky now stood side-by-side, and Eleanor did not need to be told what would happen next, for Eleanor saw what was on the base of that button: the words "Victoria Sircar." Vicky was going to push the button and end herself.

It all happened so fast. Vicky said not a word, save for the weeping. As Vicky's hand pushed down, Eleanor leaped towards the other woman. It was almost a carbon copy of Eleanor, Chidi, and Jason almost "murdered"Janet, except it was Eleanor leaping to stop Vicky, with he two women and the button all falling to the floor at the same time.

Almost...

 **TO BE CONTINUED**


	4. The Role Of A Lifetime, Part 1

Notes: So, the second season is here, and THANK GOD it is as good as season one. All the elements of V1 are here, almost all the V2 additions satisfy, including Tiya Sircar as Real Eleanor/Vicky/Denise. She is just as charming as a wannabe acting diva with a possible heart gold. And she is going to be a major part of this season (and seeing Chapter 16, she's gonna be a baddie. But I want her to be GOOD, soooo...) So much that (and this is unusual for me, based on my history with these things) I'm basing a good deal of this story on elements in V2. So basically, the actual reset did not happen. The V2 soulmates will not make this trip, although I kinda think Tahani and her S2 soul mate will make a connection on TV and I think Angelique is quite cute.  
Also, no flash forwards in this episode, but that will probably start up again in the next chapter. This will be pretty much centered on Eleanor and Vicky. The usual disclaimers…. Update: It may be that Vicky could turn out to be the big bad here. Not in MY fics! And that girl can siiiing...!

(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)

 **Chapter Text**

 ** **The Past: The warehouse****

* * *

Eleanor, Vicky, and the button tower all fell in a heap near the boxes surrounding them. It was a near-repeat of when Chidi accidentally "murdered" the AI Janet. With one big difference…the button was never pushed. Eleanor and Vicky were alright, at least health-wise.

But Vicky was still in tears and Eleanor was not looking at a con-woman who tried to break the heart of her good friend, but a broken person who has also seen her life…or in this case, afterlife…go up in smoke.

Eleanor lead Vicky too a rather large crate just low enough in height for the two to sit on, and it was there that Eleanor allowed Wiki to cry hard on her shoulder. The blonde kissed Vicky's jet black hair and the shorter woman started to compose herself. Then Vicki looked up and saw Eleanor's smiling face and almost lost it.

"Hey, Short Stack...what's wrong?" Eleanor flashing true concern with that smile.

"Me, Eleanor! ME! I! FORKED! UP!"

"No, Vick. It's me, Remember I'm the one who figured it out..."

"Eleanor, it's me. If I was better at my role..."

"Role...?"

Vicky seemed filled with and an enormous amount of guilt as she explained: "I was playing a part...we all were I guess you figured out that I was never Eleanor Shellstrop. I'm just a second-rate wannabe actress playing a part.."

Vicky couldn't tell why Eleanor was smirking at that. "Dude... As one con girl to another... You were absolutely fantastic!"

"Yeah," Vicky responded with a touch of sarcasm. "Yeah, I nailed the role... Until I... Until I forgot that I was acting..."

The smirk was gone from Eleanor's face. "So, you actually fell in love with Chidi..."

Vicky powder head slightly and played with the buttons on her shirt. "I fell in love with Chidi, I also kinda fell for Tahani, too. I guess you guys kind of wound up being sort of being the Three Musketeers...'

"And..." Eleanor asked nervously, " __...me?__ "

The answer came in the for a pair of pink lips crashing into Eleanor's.

And when Vicky's tear-stained face separated from Eleanor's, the blonde's face was definitely in deer-in-headlights mode.

This was followed by moments of silence, interjected by a few mutual smiles and short replays of Vicky's bold move. Then Eleanor asked the obvious question to her: "Who are you...?"

"Well, my real name is Vicky...Victoria Trisha Sengupta..."

"India...?"

"No. Homegrown demon. You see everything about us, our bodies, speech patterns, ethnicities...everything was chosen for us. It gives us a way to figure out how to deal with humans,"

"Like how to torture them." It wasn't a question from Eleanor. It was a statement of acknowledged fact.

Vicky lowered her head slightly and kept silent for a beat or two. "It started out like that...and it fun at first seeing you go through your paces." Then Vicky started to chuckle."That morning after the party was a masterpiece! Eleanor had to to smirk when she recalled that fever dream with giraffes, mega jumbo flying shrimp...all to an Ariana Grande soundtrack. And she had to ask Vicki how did they do that like a fangirl wanting to know how the did all that cool shirt in the Star Wars movies. And Vicky, in turn, was thrilled to tell her. The Cliff's Notes version was they took down everything Eleanor did at party and visually blew it up. Creating that visual nightmare was a madhouse of activity. Creatures had to be created out of nothing, but demons can do that. They had to get those yellow and black striped jumpsuits on everyone, including the four humans not named Eleanor Shellstrop.

"And Michael ran the whole operation like he was forking Spielberg. You should have been there...you would have been impressed!"

What impressed Eleanor was how this mousey person that pretended to be her had her face light up as she remembered that night. And a lit up Vicky face was also a beautiful one. But the blonde did have one question...

"How did you know about all the things I thinking? Like, some of that shirt I didn't even think I was thinking..."

By this time, Vicky really didn't care about keeping the secrets to castle. "Demons, Eleanor...well, we have abilities that other souls don't have. One of those abilities is to actually go into someone's thinking..."

"Mind reading...?"

"It's a bit more involved than that. I'll show you..."

There was no theatrics, special effects, or ethereal sounds. Eleanor just felt Vicky's was not a rude presence...as a matter of fact it felt very welcoming, enough that Eleanor invited the other woman's mind in.

It was a guided tour through a woman who had been through a lot. Horrid parents, bad friendships and relationships. There was not a lot of happy in the mind of Eleanor Shellstrop.

Ironically, in fact, the beginning of happy for Eleanor was after she came to the good place. And Vicky looked at a lot of that as she travelled within.

There was Chidi. Vicki's original soulmate. He's a nerd alright, but a loveable, sexy one who Eleanor fell for at first sight. And for all the bullshirt Eleanor put him through, he was and remains by her side...

Tahani. Vain, self-centred, name-dropping. And statuesque, caramel skin, lips like pillows, breasts like islands. And a better friend she could not find.

Jason. Dumbest. Human. Ever. But also the most honest human ever. And there is a certain charm to it that Eleanor is attracted to.

Janet. No, she's not human. But she is beyond whip-smart, maybe even smarter than she realises. She's not a robot, not human, but unbelievably amazing. She loved Janet as the sister she wished she had.

Speaking of family, Vicky's mind found how Eleanor felt about both Michael and Mindy St. Cloud. Mindy was Eleanor's mirror image, except for Mindy's lust for snortables. Brutally honest, unashamedly sexual, a master at cutting through anyone's bullshirt. This is the mom Eleanor needed.

Michael. Yeah, maybe the entire thing was a lie. Vicky knew...she played a part. But then, Mikey's always been sort of like a dad to everyone at the human division, and Vicky has seen it in how he's handled these four humans. So Eleanor thinks of Michael as a dad. Vicky understood.

And then Vicky found Eleanor's feelings about her. All of those feelings.

Vicky's response was non verbal, but it said volumes. In fact, the kiss Vicky gave Eleanor practically screamed Vicky's reaction to what she found in Eleanor's mind. The fact that Eleanor returned that kiss in the intense way she did confirmed what she found.

Then their faces separated and both knew that things had become more complicated.

They had no exactly how complicated...but they were about to find out.

 ** **TBA****

Notes: My muse ran out, but ideas are percolating. If you have any ideas, let me know...


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